June 16-19, 2005
Washington Terrace Hotel
1515 Rhode Island Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20005
(866) 984-6835 Washington DC 20005
http://www.washingtonterracehotel.com
Organized by:Arnie Ostebee, Saint Olaf College
Jon Scott, Montgomery College
Description
This workshop is intended for department chairs who are new to the post
or have years of experience. The emphasis is on leadership; that
elusive quality that chairs are expected to possess but have little
opportunity to develop and refine while dealing with the day to day
demands of academic administration. This program is unique in
that mathematics department chairs will have time to discuss issues and
gain insights from their colleagues who are in the same positions.
The workshop will address concepts of leadership, vision, and
management as they apply to chairing a mathematical sciences
department. We will discuss many issues facing department chairs
including recruitment and retention of students, curriculum change,
faculty firing, retention, mentoring, and development, review,
assessment, legal issues, conflict resolution, workload, adjuncts,
TA’s, budgets and finance, and external support. Sessions will
focus on individual growth, time management, and balancing the demands
on the chairperson. The format will be primarily discussion
sessions devoted to case studies and particular issues. These
sessions will address issues faced by new, mid-career, and long-time
department chairs and provide opportunities for chairs to meet together
based upon institutional profile as two-year colleges, liberal arts
colleges, comprehensive state colleges and universities, and research
universities.
Keynote Address: Dennis Berkey,
President of Worcester Polytechnic
Institute (Friday afternoon,
title tba)
Dennis D. Berkey assumed the Presidency of WPI on July 1,
2004. Dr. Berkey received a B.A. in mathematics
from Muskingum College, an M.A. in mathematics from Miami University,
and a Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Cincinnati. He joined
the faculty of Boston University in 1974, chaired the Department of
Mathematics from 1978 to 1983, was dean of the College of Arts and
Sciences from 1987 to 2002, and twice served as university provost at
BU from 1987 to 1991 and from 1996 to 2004. Dr. Berkey's published
research is in applied mathematics, the theory of differential
equations and optimal control.
The workshop will begin with a reception on Thursday evening, June
16, and conclude at noon Sunday, June 19. A full agenda will be posted
on this site in mid-May.
The discussions described below will be based on materials from
Leading the Mathematical Sciences
Department: A Resource for Chairs (MAA Notes 64), edited by Tina
H. Straley, Marcia P. Sward and Jon W. Scott. A copy of this volume
will be provided to each participant.
Case Studies
A case study is a short, one paragraph to one page description of an
event that is based upon an actual occurrence. The group will
discuss possible solutions to the given situation, what action they
would take, and how they would resolve the issues. This may be
followed by a more general discussion with the participants of the
general issue and situations that they have confronted.
Issue Sessions
Issues sessions will focus on 2-3 issues; discussion will be spurred by
1-2 page papers on each issue. Participants should be prepared to
discuss their own experiences and questions on the specific issues.
Discussion Issues
- Undergraduate student recruitment, especially efforts to recruit
underrepresented minority students.
- Graduate student enrollment (impact of having or not having a
VIGRE program, foreign students vs US residents/citizens, teaching vs
research assistantships or fellowships).
- Faculty review and merit pay.
- Encouraging/leading curriculum renewal (departmental buy-in,
institutionalization, interdisciplinary or cross-disciplinary programs).
- External funding (pros, cons, ways to promote, issues in the
department).
- Hiring and firing staff and faculty.
- Budgets (managing, stretching resources, strategies for
increasing your budget).
- Graduate program issues (renewing curriculum, preparing for jobs
in and outside of academe, professional masters programs, balancing the
interests of the faculty).
- Undergraduate major (preparing for jobs, teaching, graduate
school).
- Dependence on and enculturation of part-time faculty (adjuncts,
TA's) and temporary faculty (non-tenure track, post-docs, other).
- Resolving conflict within the department.
- Managing conflict with the dean, provost, or other departments.
- Mentoring faculty throughout their careers.
- Technology in the classroom.
Post-Workshop
An email discussion group will be established for the participants and
leaders of this workshop. Additionally, a reunion meeting will be
held at the Joint Mathematics Meetings in January 2006 at San Antonio
where
participants will have the opportunity to discuss how they have
incorporated the ideas of the workshop into their position as chair.
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